National Night Out Brings Muskogee Police, Community Together

At least four police departments across the area took part in National Night Out Tuesday night. The goal is to bring communities and officers closer together.

Muskogee threw a big party in three of its parks. Officers prepared for 4,000 to show, and lots of people that came out said they did so to show support for their police.

Muskogee’s Rotary Park was filled with neighbors meeting neighbors Tuesday night for National Night Out. It was a chance for police and the community to ‘hang out.’

"If you look at the national news, it's nothing but negative. It always starts at home, so you have to start here with your friends and family, build your community and then it goes from there, ripple effect," mother Janette Houston said.

The ripple effect is being felt all over town; Elliott Park hosted the event too.

From bounce houses to community groups, the city's outreach is happening.

Officer Jeramie Garcia said, “What National Night Out is, it's an opportunity for us to bring to them, without having a problem, without having an issue, just say, hello, hey we're here to hang out with you."

Kids also understand how important it is to show support and be part of a neighborhood.

Tony: “What's it like to be here?”
Niandrea Wright: "It's actually good because of everything that's going on."

"I wanted to come out so I could spend time with my friends and my family," Israel Hinton said.

And the outreach doesn't stop there. Wednesday morning the tired officers are going to get back at it and hold Coffee with a Cop.

Another National Night Out event was held in Broken Arrow Tuesday night. The city was one of the more than 16,000 communities participating.

The national event started in 1985, and Broken Arrow has been participating for the past 16 years.

“Anytime we can come out and show them the truck and kinda show them what we do, we take advantage of it,” Lieutenant Justin Cheatham with BA Fire said.

National Night Out is about meeting your neighbors and forming bonds with the police and firefighters who serve your community.